Page 37 of In Your Light

“I was just kidding about the taser,” Sawyer said. “I mean, I do have one, but I wouldn’t use it on him.” Then he shrugged. “Maybe.”

Fray laughed and slung his arm around Sawyer’s shoulder. “We should see what hurts more. Me zapping you, or you tasing me.”

“Absolutely not,” Tobin said. Then he smiled at Fyn. “These two shouldn’t be left unsupervised, just so you know.”

Sawyer laughed. “Fyn, I’m glad you’re here. And you have a bag with you, so am I right to assume you’d like to stay a while?”

Fyn gave him a nod, grateful that he brought it up and Fyn didn’t have to ask. “Yes. If that’s okay. I don’t know how long for. Maybe a season or two. Maybe more.”

“Perfect! Let’s find you a place,” Sawyer said. He looked down the street for a second, then met Fyn’s gaze. “I think I know the perfect one. Let’s go check it out. It’s this way,” he said, nodding to the lane that ran up the side of the police station closest to the school. “The beauty of this town being abandoned by humans means all the houses sit empty,” Sawyer said. “And given the only way out of here is by boat, most of the furniture just got left behind. Tables and chairs, cupboards, that kind of thing.”

“But,” Tobin added, “it also means the place will need work and a really good clean.”

“I like hard work,” Fyn said, but then whatever he was about to say died in his throat when he realised where Sawyer was taking him. He stopped walking. “You mean here? This place?”

Sawyer looked at Fyn, then the house and back at Fyn. “Well, yeah. Because the back door basically opens into the woods. I thought you’d appreciate that. You know... so you can go for a run whenever you want. I know it kinda looks swallowed by the trees, but we can get all that cleared away.” He frowned then. “If you wanted something closer to the water⁠—”

“No, no,” Fyn said quickly. “Please, don’t misunderstand. I just meant... you would give me a whole house? I was expecting.... Well, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Maybe a foldaway bed in an outbuilding or... a converted stable, or something. I don’t even know. But this—” He waved his hand. “—is a whole house.” He would have gotten teary if he wasn’t so excited.

“Aw, Fyn,” Sawyer said gently.

“A stable?” Fray laughed. “I mean, we could probably put some hay down for you if you’d like.”

Tobin nudged him with his elbow, and Sawyer sighed.

“Ignore him,” he said to Fyn. “Let’s go take a look inside.”

The house itself was a small, weatherboard cottage. It was old, as was the village itself. The tin roof was rusted in some places, the paint on the exterior had peeled long ago, and leaves covered the small front porch.

Sawyer opened the front door, and they went inside.

The first room was as big as Fyn’s entire home back at the camp. There was an old sofa against the wall, opposite a fireplace that hadn’t seen flames in a long time. The walls were an aged yellow, and old hessian curtains only half hid the grimy window. The wooden floorboards creaked under their feet.

It was cold. So cold, it actually felt damp, and a layer of old dust covered every surface.

Fray pulled the makeshift curtain across and spluttered at the dust. “Yeah, these need to go.”

Sawyer went into the next room. “The kitchen,” he said. “Kind of.”

There was a small cabinet with a sink, a cast iron stove, a shelf with a ceramic jug, and a freestanding cupboard.

“It’s like a time capsule,” Tobin said.

He and Fray were looking around with what could only be described as concerned horror, but Fyn saw nothing but potential and...

Well, home.

This was his place.

“Is this really mine?” he said. “Well, not mine to keep, but mine to stay in while I’m here.”

Sawyer gave him a gentle pat on the arm and a soft smile. “It’s yours for as long as you want to stay, Fyn.”

Fray turned the kitchen tap. The pipes clunked and groaned, and then as if they’d been holding their breath, coughed out some water, just a sputter at first, and then it flowed. “There’s a tank out the back, I think,” he said. He shut the water off and smiled at Fyn. “We’ll need to clean the leaves out of the tank, probably, so you might wanna boil the water before you drink it.”

Tobin flicked the light switch on and off, and everyone looked up at the ceiling light. It didn’t come on. “I think the power is off at the main. I’ll check it.”

“I can do all of what needs doing,” Fyn said. “I don’t expect anyone to help.”